


Spectral

by commander_connivingcat



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-05
Updated: 2019-08-18
Packaged: 2020-08-09 18:10:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,350
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20122675
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/commander_connivingcat/pseuds/commander_connivingcat
Summary: Ignis never imagined someone would be there to defend him, but the Ring of the Lucii awoke a bond stronger than death.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> My day one entry for IgNyx week! Just a short concept for a longer fic. Didn’t mean to use all of the prompts, but I sort of did lol 😅 Done very quickly, so I apologize for the lack of polish.

The Ring of the Lucii stole Ignis’s last breaths as he lay in the crystal’s light. His senses dulled, sparing him Ardyn’s gloating monologue. But he couldn’t escape the panic: panic, at dying alone. 

“No…no…no! I don’t want to die without him…” he cried, wasting what little air his lungs could still hold. The pain of realization burned hotter than the purple flames taking his body. 

All he could feel was pain. Pain so overwhelming it felt like all he had ever known. Now, a primal fear told him it would be the last thing he ever knew. 

Everything grew cold as the world faded away. 

“Not him…” a distant voice whispered. It was just on the edge of Ignis’s consciousness, between waking and death. The voice was commanding but gentle. 

“You’re still needed.” There it was again! This time, it sounded closer. 

“I don’t care if he made a deal, let me make another one!” Now it was practically in Ignis’s ear, yelling at someone just out of earshot.

The voice sounded strong and reassuring. It had the tenacity of fighting to protect someone, but who it was, Ignis had no idea. 

Perhaps it was his dying body playing tricks on him, perhaps it was something more, but he could swear his felt someone’s warm hands lift his back to cradle him. 

With every ounce of strength left in his body, Ignis tried to pry his eyes open, but no matter what he did, all he could see was darkness. His dry lips moved to ask questions, to seek understanding, but could form no words.

“Hush now, you’re going to be alright. I’m going to make sure of it.” There he was. The voice sounded familiar, but only in passing. 

He wanted so badly to believe this new voice. To believe that he would see Noctis and his friends again. To open his eyes and meet his new guardian…but Ignis was scared to believe. He was terrified that he knew better. 

With wavering strength, all the strategist could do was whisper, “Don’t go…” 

“I won’t…” the warm voice replied.


	2. Chapter 2

As Ignis left the conscious world, Nyx looked up to face the Old Wall. 

“I agree, I submit, what the hell else do you want me to say?! Just save his damn life already!” 

“Then it is so,” the founder boomed as the line of Lucii faded into darkness.

“Looks like you’re stuck with me,” Nyx whispered, looking down into the strategist's face below him. It was gentle, kind, but determined. The world needed more people like him. 

Nyx placed one spectral hand on his face, brushing hair out of those eyes, so he could watch as color returned to the young face. Soon, the burns faded and his lungs filled with the fresh air of life. 

Ignis’s bright eyes opened as he heard the distant sound of Noctis’s desperate cries. His eyes were met with the fading visage of a Glaive he once knew. Eyes wide with recognition, he silently plead for his savior not to go.

Memories from long ago, when Ignis was much younger, flashed too fast before him. The sounds of rain and someone catching him; the feeling he got the first time he warped; and a warm “I”ll see you later, Specs,” were all he could grasp before the haze of exhaustion distorted everything. 

Before he could conceptualize his feelings, words slipped through Ignis’s lips: 

“Will I ever see you again?” 

The barely visible image of Nyx smiled. While his mouth moved, Ignis only heard his words in his mind: 

“I’m not going anywhere. Why don’t you meet me after dark, Specs?” 

Nyx wanted to touch Ignis’s face, but all he could leave the strategist was a warm breeze on his cheek as he faded away. 

The problem now, was that it was always dark. 

Ignis regained his footing as Noctis met him. Ardyn was nowhere to be seen, dissipating into a dark sludge under Gladio’s blade and Prompto’s fury.

All too soon, Ignis bid his best friend farewell. The Prince entered the crystal, leaving the other men with mere hope that he would return soon. 

Hours passed. Ignis sat on a slab of broken concrete under the dull light from the crystal, staring down at his hands. Not a single scratch was on them, but how? He had lost! He should be dead! The only explanation he could fathom involved someone from a dream: Nyx. 

Every wonderful memory he had with the Glaive came flooding back: every feeling, every sound, every heart break. Ignis covered his face with his hands. 

But he was given no time to wallow, as he soon felt a warm hand on his shoulder. 

“I believe you’re late,” he whispered through his fingers. 

“Am I? Hard to tell time now,” the voice responded.

Ignis looked up and was met with...Nyx! He didn’t appear spectral or hazy, but perfectly normal. As though he was in the room!

The face was older than he remembered, but just as handsome. For a moment, all of his breath was stolen as every memory flooded Ignis’s senses.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Ignis and Nyx met.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Entry for Day 3 of IgNyx week!

It was the night of Ignis’s twentieth birthday. With the age came all of the conflicting emotions: he was years beyond being an official adult, but still discovering what that truly meant.   
The bros had thrown him a “surprise” birthday party. The three of them brought Iggy an a new restaurant in one of the darker corners of Insomnia. Ignis had been given an address to find, which took him hours. Upon entering the dark corner lot of a building, he was bombarded by the sounds of kazoos and confetti from his friends. The whole scene seemed a bit childish, but it warmed his heart to know that they had done this for him.   
As for the restaurant itself, the young chef found the food amazing! Together, the four men spent hours sipping coffee and tasting everything on the menu. The hour grew late as the meal wrapped up. Outside, a car waited to take them home, or so Ignis thought.   
Gladio and Prompto were already in the car as Noctis started to crawl in. Without thinking, Ignis moved to side in after him, but Noct shut the door! Shocked by the rude behavior, Ignis stared at the car for a moment.   
“You thought that was everything, Specs?” Noctis asked as he rolled down the window. “We have one more present for you! But you’ve got to find it!” He threw a notepad out the window before rolling it back up.   
“See ya!” Prompto cheered as the car drove away.   
In a darkened alleyway, Ignis stood alone. The neon “open” light of the restaurant flickered and went out next to him.   
Left with little else to do but satisfy his curiosity, he flipped open the notepad. On the first page was a horribly drawn map. Among childish looking buildings was a winding line. None of the lines were straight and the buildings looked indecipherable. Random symbols and shapes with numbers next to them didn’t help matters. In the lower corner was a doodle of someone with upright pointy hair. Next to that, Prompto had signed his name.   
Ignis felt like he was walking in circles, trying to decipher which direction he was supposed to head in. He turned a corner, so focused on the map that he almost didn’t notice the three figures standing in the shadows.   
“You’re lookin’ a bit lost there, sonny,” the tall figure in the middle cooed as they came forward.   
“Not in the slightest,” Ignis growled, putting the notebook away in his back pocket.   
“Oh, don’t try to be tough, boy…” the left figure, a boulder of a person, chimed in. Light glinted off of a blade the third person produced from their belt.   
“You seem like a good kid.” The middle figure spoke. He had come into the light. “How ‘bout you just hand over your wallet and whatnot and we avoid all of the...unpleasantries. Wouldn’t want that pretty face of yours gettin’ nicked up!”   
Ignis knew there was no escaping the situation, but he was determined. He summoned a knife into his left hand, already calculating how to strike.   
“Stupid move, kid,” the bladed figure hissed, lunging forward. He was fast, coming straight on for his attack. Ignis braced himself, prepared to block the blade.   
Clang!   
The sound of metal colliding echoed through the alley. But Ignis’s blade was untouched.   
The mugger’s blade was caught on an ornate kukri, held by a figure cloaked in elaborate black armor. Ignis recognized the outfit at once; they were a member of the KingsGlaive.   
“Three against one? C’mon, that hardly seems fair!” A man’s voice rang out from under the hood. With a flick of his wrist, the Glaive sent the mugger’s blade flying.   
Caught off guard, the disarmed man turned back to his friends. The mountain came to his rescue, charging at the Glaive.   
But Ignis wasn’t going to let this Glaive have all of the fun. Scanning his surroundings, he found a nonlethal solution.   
The Glaive bent low, preparing to strike the organs of his attacker, but the large figure was stopped in his tracks! A trash can lid smashed into his face, thrown by Ignis with otherworldly accuracy. His would be savior turned back to him, nodding.   
The two of them faced the third attacker, ready for a joint strike. But the third figure whimpered before turning and running away down the street, followed by his two lackies.   
“They just don’t make muggers like they used to,” the Glaive commented, removing his hood. “Still, what’s a kid like you doing in this part of town?”   
But Ignis didn’t hear the question, he was too busy admiring his hero. The man was older than he, with tanned skin and braids, much like the northern islanders. His face was ruggedly handsome, framed by a two day shadow. The whole scene was capped by his dark eyes, sparkling with kindness and mischief.   
Caught in the moment, Ignis missed the next thing he was asked. The Glaive was looking at him with one raised eyebrow. Clearing his throat, the young advisor tried to play off what had happened.   
“I’ll have you know, I am no ‘kid’.” He hoped the look he gave was commanding.   
“Really? Then how old are you?” The Glaive smiled at him as he teased, drawing a rosy blush to Iggy’s cheeks.   
Drawing on his most authoritative title, Ignis responded, “I am the advisor to the crown prince!”   
“That doesn’t answer my question.” The Glaive taunted.   
“Fine. I’m twenty. I was out here to celebrate my birthday with friends.” Somehow, Ignis felt childlike revealing his information.   
“Ah! See, that wasn’t so hard! Well, interesting place for a birthday party…” The Glaive looked around, surveying the dark street.   
“Yes, well, it didn’t all occur here. After eating at an establishment over there…”  
“OH! The Craving Coeurl?! That place is amazing! Who was cooking?” The Glaive interrupted.  
Slightly taken aback, Ignis took a moment to respond. “I...don’t know.”  
The Glaive frowned, “Well, I think you would’ve had Valen...they’re a way better chef, anyways…”   
Ignis waived off his contemplation. “Regardless, my friends sent me on some sort of scavenger hunt with an indecipherable map…”   
The Glaive perked up! “Scavenger hunt? That sounds fun! Strange place to send you, though.”   
“I’m not entirely sure where it is they intended to send me,” Ignis replied, pulling the notepad from his pocket and holding it up for the Glaive to examine.   
He leaned in to study the small pages, coming close enough that Ignis could hear his breathing. “Oh!” He exclaimed, “I know where they want you to go! This map isn’t so bad!”   
“Really?” Ignis turned the notepad to reexamine it. “It looks simply atrocious to me.”   
The Glaive shrugged. “Eh, I’ve seen worse.” For the briefest moment, his eyes had a hint of sadness to them.   
“How about I take you? Make sure you don’t get into any more trouble,” the dark man offered, holding out his hand. “Unless of course you want more trouble. I can offer both, but that’ll cost extra,” he added, winking.   
Ignis blushed as he stared at the hand before him. “That’s completely unnecessary! I can handle myself and...”   
“I’ll warp us there,” the Glaive offered.  
Ignis admitted to himself that he had never had the chance to use warping magic before and that it looked tantalizingly thrilling! This stranger could be his chance to! Although he seemed rather arrogant, the man must be fairly decent, he was part of the KingsGlaive, after all.   
“Only for the sake of brevity,” Ignis replied, taking the outstretched hand.   
In a moment of swift grace, he was pulled into the Glaive. “Hold on tight,” his hero said, smiling down at him.   
And suddenly they were off! Ignis felt the air be forced out of his lungs and his stomach make flips. Magic sparked on his skin and his eyes were distracted by all of the blue light. The experience was thrilling but nauseating. Just as he thought his body couldn’t take any more, everything stopped! Suddenly he was standing on a third floor fire escape, clutching onto his savior, gasping for air.   
“First time’s always a doozy,” the Glaive commented, completely unphased by the ordeal.   
“Indeed…” Ignis replied as he desperately tried to regain his balance and ease his stomach. Seeing his struggle, the Glaive grabbed onto him, needing both arms to fully catch him.   
All Ignis knew was that he was suddenly wrapped in the arms of this handsome stranger. The man smelled of salt water and earth. Every muscle in his arms could be felt even through his uniform. He seemed so much larger this close.   
Slowly, the young advisor looked up to see the face of his savior. The Glaive wore a concerned expression with an evident pink blush to his tanned face. In his mind, Ignis found the man more human in that moment than he ever expected. He wasn’t as conceited as he once thought.   
The Glaive cleared his throat and pulled Ignis to his feet. “Ready?” he asked, still blushing. Iggy simply nodded. He barely had time to grab onto the man before they were off again!  
The feeling of magic on Ignis’s skin was different this time. He was prepared for it, forcing himself to exhale as they warped. This warp was longer, though. By the last second, Ignis felt himself starting to black out.   
And suddenly he was in the cold night air with a dark sky above him. They had landed on a rooftop. Ignis leaned heavily on his hero, fighting to stand against the will of the blackness he saw. The Glaive caught him.   
As Ignis’s senses returned to him, he realized how close they were: their faces were inches apart, mirroring each other’s shock.   
“Seems you have saved me once again,” Ignis commented, trying his best to be smooth.   
“Only because you keep falling for me,” the Glaive responded, returning a sly grin.   
“You could say you’re very ‘catching’” the advisor played. But he was screaming in his mind. Had he truly just tried to flirt using a pun?! A pun?!  
But the Glaive just giggled. “I’ll let you have that one, birthday boy. I couldn’t follow it up if I tired.”   
Ignis’s heart was put at rest but his blush continued, at least he had not fully blown his first chance.   
It took three more warps before the duo set foot in their destination, a penthouse room in the fanciest hotel in Insomnia. Neither of them seemed to mind the journey, as they clung to each other the whole time. By the end, Ignis was able to act unphased by each warp. Now, they stood on the balcony, waiting for someone to unlock the door.   
“By the way, the name’s Nyx,” the Glaive burst, holding out a hand to shake.   
“Ignis,” he replied, taking the warm hand offered to him. “I should thank you. I could not have done this so...efficiently...without you.”   
Nyx simply stared at him for a moment before bursting into laughter. “Well, at least I’m good for something: efficiency!”  
“I didn’t mean…” Ignis stammered, clearly embarrassed.   
“I know, I know,” Nyx finally stopped laughing, wiping tears from his eyes. “Thanks for everything...Ignis.” This time, Nyx smiled at Ignis, not due to some situation or a joke, but at the person before him, leaving the young advisor shocked and blinded by such beautiful radiance.   
It was a kind smile, bright from the glow Nyx gave off, all surrounded by the glow from the stars and city lights.   
Ignis’s eyes grew wide in that moment. Before, he had thought this Glaive a decent and interesting person,if not a bit conceited, but one he could likely become friends with. Now, he saw beauty, kindness, and strength in the man before him. He saw a man that always had an island breeze at his back and the weight of selflessness on his shoulders.   
The whole world went silent and Ignis lost touch of his body. He knew, from then on, he would never meet anyone else like this man.   
Nyx turned away to stare out over the city. “Tonight was fun. Want to do it again, sometime?”   
In his mind, Ignis wanted that more than Nyx would ever know. Before he could respond, though, the balcony door was opened by Noctis. Turning back from his diverted attention, the advisor meant to introduce his new friend, but Nyx was gone, having disappeared into the wind.   
That night was a memory that would stay with Ignis for years to come. He compared every other lover to his mysterious savior. On days where Ignis’s mind wandered through rainy streets without his body, he went so far as to wonder if Nyx would approve of the man he had become.   
In the following years, Nyx was relegated to a mere rumor, for Ignis. The advisor heard tales of a heroic Glaive, one who never tired of warping, was a bit of an ass, but little else. He never caught a glimpse of his once savior, as all the Glaives wore their masks in training.  
No matter how hard he tried not to, he still thought of the Glaive. His heart hurt as he convinced himself that it was a naive influence that he felt that night. Nothing more.   
It was all just a memory, until now.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nyx grapples with his memories and feelings for Ignis before learning of the future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Entry for Day Four of IgNyx Week!

“So why didn’t you stick around?” Crowe asked, before slamming down another shot.  
“I don’t know...it just...it was weird, you know? He’s so young and so...different. It wouldn’t have worked out.” Nyx said, running his fingers around the rim of his beer.   
“You fell head over heels for a guy you met in just one night! And you’re telling me that you don’t want to see him again because he’s too different?” Crowe wiped her mouth, slammed down the glass and turned to face Nyx. “NO SHIT HE’S DIFFERENT! Because that was your once in a lifetime, love at first sight, soulmate...crap.” She stumbled towards the end of her sentence. “But you get it! Almost no one ever finds the shit you just found! You gotta take advantage of it! Call him, text him, do SOMETHING!”   
When she was gone, she sounded so much like her “brother”, Libertus, that Nyx joked he really could see the family resemblance.   
“You and I both know that that shit isn’t real. Besides, he’s ‘advisor to the crown prince’,” Nyx mimed a royal voice. “He doesn’t want someone like me...some...scamp.” He went back to staring at his beer.   
Crowe burst into a loud laughter. “Scamp?! What the hell does that mean?”   
Indignantly, Nyx responded, “It means that nothing happened! Besides...I don’t have his number...”   
Throwing her hands up in frustration, Crowe stood and turning in a circle. “You sir, are an idiot. And I am going to move on to less frustrating idiots.” She got another drink and left to see other friends.   
Alone now, Nyx continued to stare into his half empty glass. The ruckus of the bar seemed to fade from his senses, leaving him with his thoughts.   
That night had was burned into his memories. The sight of the handsome advisor looking up at him, the way his eyes held such an intelligent charm to them, the way he looked when he smiled. The man glowed with kindness and grace. Ignis truly was someone special. So readily he had held onto a stranger, he had trusted some unknown Glaive. All to play some silly game his friends wanted.  
He deserved someone to care for him, to help him. Nyx had to wonder if he knew that, if his friends knew that.   
But the advisor was so far out of Nyx’s league it wasn’t even funny. The man regularly socialized with the elite of Insomnia. He could make small talk with the greatest minds in Eos. He even looked like he had modeled in Altissa. By the six, Nyx was just lucky Ignis had flirted with him.   
He couldn’t deny the way he felt, though. Nyx wanted so badly to see him again. He wanted to hold him again, to smell his wonderful cologne. His heart fluttered every time he thought of that smile and he went to sleep dreaming of what could have been.   
While the night had been wonderful, Nyx choked it up to Ignis having drank too much at dinner or being too young to know better. He stabbed at his own heart, telling himself over and over again that it was all just a fluke.   
A year passed by, allowing the Glaive to pretend that he forgot about the young advisor and continue on with his life. But fate made sure that he didn’t.   
Occasionally, Nyx heard his name float by in a conversation, but it never seemed consequential. Typically, it as about the brilliant and handsome advisor to the prince or how he had created some amazing new strategy.   
Once, the islander saw him walk by. The advisor strode with graceful purpose, never bothering to look towards the training Glaives. He was styling his hair differently now, something that would be deemed “fashionable” by the tabloids. Hard as he tried to focus, Nyx ended up screwing up his whole routine that day.   
He even caught a glimpse of the young advisor training with his new daggers. It was late in the evening as Nyx made Citadel rounds, passing by the training chambers. Covered in sweat, shirt sleeves rolled up to his elbows, prepared to strike, Nyx had to admit that Ignis looked utterly tantalizing. The Glaive had to duck around the door, blood rushing, so that he wouldn’t be seen. Embarrassed and unable to speak, he warped away.  
Today, Nyx was scheduled for desk work, having pulled another unauthorized stunt. Rather than rot in the uncomfortable chair he was assigned, the daredevil opted to join in on a round of training.   
Everything took place in the main grounds: a large round room with an open corridor running along its perimeter and a stone tower in the middle of the sands stretching to the ceiling. The goal was to make it the top of the tower before the enemy snipers saw you. It was a drill Nyx had run a thousand times.   
What he didn’t know was that Prince Noctis and his advisor would be watching today.   
Nyx and Libertus were almost through the drill, having easily evaded snipers to this point. The pillar was in sight, two more warps and they’d be done. Taking the lead, Nyx threw one of his kukris toward the center of the pillar. It lodged into the stone backed by precision and godly strength. Almost instantly, Nyx hung from its handle.   
While scanning the area for enemies and his next warp location, the Glaive’s peripheral vision caught something that glinted in the light. He turned his head, expecting to see a scope. Instead, he saw glasses...and the face that haunted his dreams wearing them.   
Ignis’s face looked so calm, so pristine. It was the sort of beauty only Michanglo could capture. The sort that would then be put on display in a museum for everyone to admire...but never touch.   
In his moment of wonder, Nyx lost track of the mission and his reactions. In what seemed like slow motion, he saw the kukri rise above him as he fell towards the sands below. In the corner of his eye, he saw the advisor’s panicked face before the world turned black.   
When the Glaive opened his eyes, he wasn’t sure if he was conscious yet. Above him, he saw the face of an angel. “He’s awake,” Ignis cried, helping him to sit up.   
Libertus fussed over him as his superiors gave him shit for a rookie mistake, but all Nyx could focus on was Ignis.   
Before he really thought out the words, he let his heart say what it had been crying for so long.   
“I’m sorry…” It wasn’t more than a whisper, shared solely by him and his savior.   
He was so sorry...for leaving without a word that night, for never contacting him, for never speaking to him, for how he felt, for...everything. The feeling had been bottled up inside of him for so long that it felt unreal to say the words.   
“Oh, think nothing of it. I’m simply glad you’re alright. Mistakes are a natural occurrence! I trust you shall learn from it!” The advisor helped to dust off the Glaive before pushing him away.   
It was in that moment that Nyx remembered he was wearing his mask. Too embarrassed to say more, he awkwardly nodded and jogged away.   
Back in the locker room, he stopped just inside the door. He threw his hood off and ran his hands over his face before unleashing the fury in his heart on the nearest locker. It was another moment...wasted.   
Nyx lashed out at himself for being so stupid, for being so heartsick. It wasn’t how he needed to act. He had embarrassed himself in front of the only person he wanted to impress. It wasn’t fate that kept them apart, it was Nyx’s own stupidity, he was sure.  
Without purpose and completely horrified with himself, Nyx returned to wallowing. For weeks, he refused to go out with the other Glaives, opting, instead, to return home and lounge in his bed.   
The moon glowed overhead when he finally fell asleep, one night. Rarely did he dream, but when he did, they were awful. This was to be no exception.   
Nyx was in his apartment, warm and comfortable on the sofa. In his arms, was him. Ignis looked up at him, smiling warmly. Overjoyed, Nyx silently pulled his angel closer, burying his face in his neck. Content to just lay against his partner, he closed his eyes.   
He was startled by a burning sensation in his hands. Looking up in panic, Nyx found Ignis to be gone. His apartment was replaced by a darkness and purple flames. The Glaive jumped to his feet, only to discover he was ankle deep in water. Disregarding his surroundings, he started to desperately search for the man that had just been in his arms.   
He cried out the name he whispered so often, but no sound left his lips. He tried again with the same result. His frustration only made him more determined to find another way.   
Desperate to not let Ignis slip away, Nyx set off through the darkness. The flames licked at his skin, burning hotter and hotter. But the Glaive pushed through the pain, knowing he had to protect the one he cared about.   
On and on he ran. Now, where the flames licked turned to ask. First he was missing his ribs, then parts of his arms. But there was an end in sight. Up ahead, he swore he saw the tall figure of his angel.   
Water sloshed at his feet as Nyx ran. His chest burned, even his heart burned, but he pushed on. Frantic now.   
There he was...he was so close...just a bit further…  
As Nyx reached Ignis, he fell to the ground. His legs turned to ash and blew away. His vision was being distorted as his whole face turned to ash.   
He reached out to Ignis, desperate to touch the man. But as he did, his angel erupted into purple flame.  
“NO!” The words tore from his ashen lips before they fell away.   
But Ignis did not hear him, for he fell to the ground, crying out in pain.   
Nyx watched in terror as the same fate befell the man before him: Ignis cried out through the mounting pain as he slowly turned to ash that floated away.   
As badly as Nyx wanted to stop Ignis’s fate, he couldn’t reach him. With his remaining hand, he tried, stretching his fingers towards what was left.   
“No, don’t go…” the he whimpered. Before Nyx could reach his love, though, the Glaive completely turned to ash.   
Nyx awoke with a start, sitting up in a sweat covered bed. He breathed heavily, the images he just saw still playing out in his mind.   
“Do you accept his path?” a voice in the corner asked.   
Nyx turned suddenly, locking eyes on a dark haired woman in traditional garb. She faced the ground with closed eyes, never moving from her position. He reached for his blades but found them missing.   
“You have been given a fortune. Do you accept it?” She asked again.   
Finally, Nyx thought he had enough understanding to answer. To him, the decision was obvious.   
“No.”   
The woman smiled. “Then I can help you.” She looked up, ice blue eyes locking on Nyx as she glided over to him.   
“If you so accept my assistance, swear this to me now. Swear to become his guardian, under the power of this star. Swear that you shall sacrifice all to protect that which you love without regret, hesitation, or weakness.”   
Love? Nyx had to pause.  
Over and over he repeated the word in his head, as though tasting it. He worked it over his lips, feeling the sound of it.   
Terrifyingly...it fit perfectly.   
“For without you, he is already destined to darkness,” the woman added.   
That was it. How could someone so amazing, so utterly perfect for changing the world be destined to something so horrible?   
“Won’t you gods give anyone a rest? Can nobody be happy?” Nyx burst, staring at the stranger.   
Her smile became warm as she looked at him and tilted her head. “That is why I am here.”   
And all of the pieces connected.   
The Glaive realised, in that moment, that if he didn’t protect his love, no one would. If Ignis was to find happiness, only he could help him. Regardless of the sacrifice Nyx would have to make, he was determined to save the man he loved.   
“I swear.”   
The woman smiled as she nodded. She reached out one pale hand and tapped Nyx’s heart. Dust that sparkled like diamonds burst from her touch.   
“Then it is so.”   
Nyx awoke, again. He sat up in a sweat soaked bed, frantically looking around. His room was empty and his kukris were on the bed stand next to him. Everything was normal.   
Outside, the dark horizon was tinged with orange as the sun began to rise. Sipping on fresh coffee, the Glaive had to ponder if it all had been a dream.   
It had to have been, but it all felt so real. In his head, he heard his mother’s words: “Never question the message of a dream, just be thankful when you understand.” Was this a moment to simply be thankful for? Did that mean he had just promised to protect Ignis?   
The Glaive sat back in a worn out chair. How could he protect the royal advisor? Be his bodyguard? Or be...close to him?   
He shook his head at the prospect. How could he ever explain what had just happened? No one would believe him. Especially not the other Glaives...  
An idea came to him! He could protect the man he loved the best way he knew how: as a Glaive. The Kingsglaive watched and protected from afar, never leaving the shadows. That is what Nyx could do. He would watch over his love, protecting his happiness, even if it never included him.   
While the prospect of his mission stabbed at the Glaive’s heart, it also brought him great peace.   
With a newfound purpose, Nyx smiled. “I’ve got your back, love,” he whispered to the empty room.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All is revealed, including their feelings for one another!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My super late entry for IgNyx week, day five!

For so long, memories are all they had of each other. It felt so surreal to be here.   
The men had camped at the crystal for days, hoping that Noctis would soon be released. It was the seventh day when even Prompto admitted that he wasn’t returning anytime soon.   
So began the long trek out of Gralea. Dameons and MTs still patrolled the abandoned halls, stressing the need for calculated steps and quiet movements.  
Nearly lost in the maze of concrete tunnels, the men walked single file, stopping briefly only to rest.   
“We’re lost…” Gladio grumbled, looking down at the shoddy beds of their current bunk room. Prompto peeked around the great shield to see what he was staring at. As it was, the bed just looked horribly unmade, with the sheets balled up at the foot of the mattress. But Ignis stood in the corner of the room, quickly realising what was going on.   
Nyx walked to the opposite side of the bed. “Leaving a breadcrumb, eh?” The Glaive stared down at the bed.   
“So, I’m guessing that’s your signature ‘messy bed’ style?” Propto piped up, finally realizing what was going on.   
Gladio didn’t find humor in the moment, though. He roared and flipped over the bunk beds. The metal frame toppled over onto the terrified Glaive staring up at it!  
“NO!” Ignis yelled, reaching out for Nyx, but he needn’t have worried. Where man and metal should have collided, there stood only mist. The bed had passed straight through Nyx and clattered to the floor.   
Both Gladio and Prompto turned to Ignis, alarmed. It took a moment for the stratigan’s nerves to catch up to his mind as he realized what was going on.   
His outstretched hand came to his mouth as he cleared his throat. “We are lost if we lose our wits now. We must remain calm and figure our way out of this. One mistake is not the end of us...not yet.” Ignis paused to take a deep breath. “Now, I suggest both of you rest and collect yourselves. I’ll take first watch.”   
Gladio grumbled as he and Prompto slinked away to find beds. Ignis made for the bench just outside of the bunkroom.   
As he sat down, the normally composed man stared down at his hands. So much had happened and so much was still happening. But everything felt...numb. 

“I think you’re going to need a manicure after this,” a voice chimed next to him.   
Turning, Ignis saw him: the Glaive that walked in his dreams.   
“This must all be some sort of dream. Some final illusion the gods have bestowed upon me. You’re not actually here…” he lamented, running his hands over his face. Ignis let his racing thoughts run away with him.   
This couldn’t be real.  
It wasn’t real.  
Why was this happening?  
Until he was brought back by the feeling of a warm hand over his.   
“I promise you, it’s real. But only for you.”   
“But...how?” Ignis was on the verge of breaking down from all of the days of stress.   
“That’s...a long story…”   
A frazzled stratigen looked up to meet Nyx’s gaze, daring him to see if this story even compared to what had already happened.   
“Well, don’t say I didn’t warn you…”  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
For years, everything Nyx had done had been in the hopes of saving Ignis. From reconnaissance and sabotage on the Empire, to personally outfitting the Prince’s regime.   
But sacrifices must be made in war. Nyx knew he was the only one who could save the people of Insomnia. The only one who could give the world a fighting chance to see tomorrow. In a moment of truth, he made the decision: he had to save the city, even if it meant his own life. This was his small part in saving all of Eos. If he didn’t help save the planet, his love would be lost as well.   
As the sun rose on that fateful morning, Nyx’s world turned to black. He didn’t know what the afterlife would look like, but he expected something bright. A place like old Galahd where his family was waiting on him.   
The Glaive opened his eyes, only to find darkness. Silence echoed throughout the space. Nyx called out, but no sound left his lips.   
Click...click...click…  
Footsteps rang through the nothingness.  
Click..click...click…  
They grew louder.   
Soon, there was a light on the horizon.   
Nyx squinted as a figure came into view. It was Shiva in full icey beauty.   
“Do not forget your vow,young Guardian.” Her cool voice rang but her lips did not move.   
“I haven’t, but I thought…” Nyx thought more than he said.   
“Now is when your duty begins…” Shiva turned, gesturing with her hand to a scene playing out on Eos.   
The astral plane could weave through time as the user saw fit. Nyx was seeing Ignis’s sacrifice play out before him, long after his own death.   
In a matter of seconds, the Glaive watched as his love was struck down by the Usurper, even with the power of the Lucii. A silent scream left his lungs.  
“Do you uphold your vow?” The cool voice asked again.   
“YES!” Every fiber of Nyx’s being screamed his answer as soon as the question left Shiva.  
“Then you have my blessing. Go…” The icy goddess snapped her fingers with a smile.  
Instantly, Nyx was at his love’s side. “Not him…” he cried to himself as he ran to hold Ignis.   
The young advisor was on the cusp of death, his body unfit to hold life. Tears ran from Nyx’s eyes as he saw what his sacrifice had amounted to.  
“You’re still needed,” he plead, holding onto the man he had dreamed of for so long.   
From his place on the edge of the beyond, the Glaive saw both the physical and the astral. The late monarchs of Lucis stared down at the men from the astral plane.   
“I have been warned that you wish to bargain for this man’s life…” a great voice boomed.   
Nyx definitely looked up at the Old Wall. “Yes! I will give whatever I must to save his life.”   
“You cannot,” a woman’s voice rang out. “For he has bargained with his life, of which you can not substitute.”   
“I don’t care if he made a deal, let me make another one!” Nyx cried out. He stared down at the dying face in his arms, trying his best to think of what he had to bargain with.   
“Take my death in exchange for not taking this man’s life! Let him live and in exchange, I shall never leave this plain!”   
For a moment, the late monarchs were silent. Simply turning to one another for guidance.   
A familiar voice spoke up. “Young Glaive, you would have a place on this wall should you wish to join us, for you died under the Ring of the Lucii. Are you truly willing to give this up?” It was King Regis, ever kind, even in death.   
Without hesitation, Nyx spoke up. “Yes.”   
“And the gods vouch for him,” Shiva’s voice added, ringing out from all directions.   
The Founder King’s figure looked down at the new Guardian. “Then it is so.”  
The Old Wall disappeared into a blinding light as Nyx felt a heavy weight fall over his features. But he smiled, as his love began to heal before his very eyes.   
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
The clock overhead ticked the hours away as Ignis listened to Nyx’s story. The whole while, he sat in silence.   
Finally, the advisor spoke, “Then I assume I’m the only one who can see you…”   
“I would agree with your assumption.” Nyx replied, trying to match Ignis’s tone. “I signed up to be your Guardian, so I guess I only exist for you.”   
But the advisor scoffed. “Signed up? That’s what you make of all this? You simply ‘volunteered’ to become the guardian for a stranger?!” His voice rose as he became more irate. “You sacrificed DEATH for me?! Do you even begin to comprehend the gravity of the situation?!”   
Just as Ignis finished, the door to the bunkroom creaked open. A sleepy Prompto rubbed his eyes. “Iggy? You okay?”  
Quickly, Ignis pulled on a mask of serenity. “Yes, Prompto. I’m fine. Go back to bed, I’ll come get you when it’s your shift.”   
The gunslinger mumbled and stumbled back to his bunk.   
As Ignis turned his attention back to the specter before him, he was met with a determined gaze. Nyx had stood up to his full height, inches above him.   
“I know what I gave up. And I didn’t do it for a stranger.”  
Ignis stared up into the dark sky of Nyx’s eyes. His body couldn’t comprehend what was before it, for his eyes saw the man in front of him, but his body could feel no warmth, his ears no breathing, and his nose no scent. It was like the stratigan was still dreaming and this fantasy would soon disappear before his eyes.   
Ignis swallowed, trying not to show how flustered he was. “If not for a stranger, they why did you do this?”   
The Glaive’s eyes softened. “I did it for a man I couldn’t get over. For a man who deserves more than this world has granted him. The one who deserves his happy ending. The one I needed to help.”  
Ignis blushed as he turned away. “I didn’t ask for whom you did this, I asked why…”  
A gentle smile crossed Nyx’s face as he gently turned Ignis’s head back towards him. “I did this because I love you.”   
Although he heard them, Ignis wasn’t sure how to comprehend those words. He felt shocked but so joyful. Questions began to race through his mind before Nyx silenced them.   
And in that moment, the greatest desire both men had gently carried with them for so long, was fulfilled.   
Ignis had never imagined he would kiss a ghost, but in this moment, Nyx felt more real to him than anything else in the world. He could feel warmth against his lips and magic against his body. Every thought vanished from his mind as his whole body gave in to the touch he had wanted for so long. But new sensations, sensations he had experienced with no other lover, also came to greet him.   
These foreign sensations flowed like a river through his own senses. He felt warmth throughout his body and a glowing happiness in his soul. But he also felt something strange: a weight on the very fiber of his soul that wasn’t meant to be there, like he was being weighed down in deep water.   
Just as Ignis thought his consciousness would be overwhelmed by the contradictory sensations, they ended. He opened his eyes and gazed upon the sight of his Glaive.  
Nyx leaned his forehead against Ignis’s. “Did you feel it too?”   
The advisor nodded lightly. “Everything felt...heavy. Was that what you feel?”   
The Glaive smiled. “Yes, that is the weight of duty. That is the weight of what I would do for you.” Ignis started to pull away. “Shhh, don’t worry. It’s not so bad. Through you, I felt...real...again.”   
The advisor pulled his love close. “Than that is how I shall repay you, my Guardian.”


End file.
